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About

Nathan P. Lourie is an observational astronomer and instrumentation scientist whose work centers on infrared time-domain astronomy, gravitational wave follow-up, and the development of next-generation survey facilities. He is best known as a principal contributor to the Wide-Field Infrared Transient Explorer (WINTER), a dedicated 1-meter robotic telescope deployed at Palomar Observatory that represents a significant leap forward in infrared survey capability. Lourie has shaped WINTER from conception to operation, contributing foundational work on its scientific design requirements, novel InGaAs detector architecture, and early commissioning performance — collectively accumulating over 60 citations across his most recognized publications. His most-cited paper (2020, 39 citations) introduced WINTER to the astronomical community and established its core mission of seeing-limited infrared transient surveys. A particularly exciting frontier of his research involves using WINTER to hunt for kilonovae — the optical and infrared signatures of merging neutron stars — as demonstrated by his 2025 follow-up campaign targeting a gravitational wave candidate event. Lourie's work bridges cutting-edge instrumentation engineering with high-stakes multi-messenger astronomy, making him an important voice in the growing community dedicated to capturing the universe's most violent and fleeting phenomena.